After 5-year gap, India resumes tourist visas for Chinese; border meeting held too

The two sides reviewed the situation at the 34th meeting of the Working Mechanism for Consultation & Coordination (WMCC) on India-China border affairs in New Delhi, four months after the last such meeting was held in Beijing.

“The two sides reviewed the situation in the India-China border areas. They expressed satisfaction with the general prevalence of peace and tranquility in the border areas, leading to gradual normalisation of bilateral relations,” the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, adding that India and China agreed to maintain regular exchanges and contacts on boundary affairs at the diplomatic and military levels through established mechanisms.

The Indian delegation was led by Gourangalal Das, Joint Secretary (East Asia), and the Chinese delegation was led by Hong Liang, Director General of the Boundary & Oceanic Affairs Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it said. The two sides prepared for the next round of Special Representatives’ talks to be held in India later this year, between National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

“With a view to advancing effective border management and sustaining peace & tranquility, the two sides deliberated on various measures as explored during the previous (23rd) round of SR (Special Representatives) talks and the 33rd meeting of WMCC,” the MEA said.

The leader of the Chinese delegation later called on Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri, officials said. During the last meeting in March, the two sides had exchanged views on early resumption of cross-border cooperation and exchanges, including on trans-border rivers and Kailash Mansarovar Yatra.

Meanwhile, in a notification on Wednesday, the Indian Embassy in Beijing said Chinese nationals could apply for tourist visas from Thursday, and explained the required procedure, including the documents that have to be submitted at the Indian visa application centres in Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou.

India had suspended issuance of tourist visas to Chinese nationals in 2020, in the wake of the Covid pandemic, but the restrictions continued in view of the military standoff along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh that began in May 2020.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry welcomed the move as a positive and beneficial step. “We take note of India’s resumption of tourist visas for Chinese citizens. This is a positive move,” China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a post on X. “Easing cross-border travel is widely beneficial. China will maintain communication and consultation with India to further facilitate travel between the two countries,” it said.

The developments come just over a week after External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s visit to China for the SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) meet earlier this month. In the meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, Jaishankar had said that while India and China had made good progress in the past nine months towards the normalisation of bilateral relations, they should work to address de-escalation on the border.

He had underlined that “differences should not become disputes” nor should “competition ever become conflict”. Jaishankar had also called on Chinese President Xi Jinping and apprised him of the “recent development” in bilateral ties.

Xi and Prime Minister Narendra Modi also met on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, on October 23 last year, days after a border patrolling arrangement was announced on October 21, leading to disengagement on the ground. An estimated 50,000-60,000 troops are still stationed at the border. Since then, Doval has travelled to China twice; Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Misri have also gone there for meetings.

The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, which began on June 30 and will continue till the end of August, was on top of India’s wishlist since the talks to normalise ties began last year. The two sides have also said that they will resume direct flights soon.

Before the suspension of tourist visas, about 2 lakh visas were issued to Chinese nationals in 2019, and about 1.63 lakh in 2018, according to official data. China does not rank among the top source countries for foreign tourist arrivals in India. For instance, in 2019, the total foreign tourist arrivals touched 1.09 crore, according to tourism ministry statistics.

In April this year, the Chinese Embassy in India had said that it had issued over 85,000 visas to Indian citizens between January 1 and April 9, 2025. “As of April 9, 2025, the Chinese Embassy and Consulates in India have issued more than 85,000 visas to Indian citizens travelling to China this year. Welcome more Indian friends to visit China, and experience an open, safe, vibrant, sincere and friendly China,” Chinese Ambassador to India Xu Feihong had said in a post on X.